Playing Sorry
by ficwriterjet
Summary: This is a 'missing scene' from Season 7 Episode 21 'Reading is Fundamental'. Dean is angry with Castiel, and Castiel offers a resolution of sorts. WARNING: Consensual spanking of an adult by a friend.


**Author's Note:** This is a 'missing scene' to season 7 episode 21 'Reading is Fundamental'. The first few lines come directly from the episode. There are spoilers for everything up to and including that episode. It was written for the 'summer 2012 challenge' at the spn_spankings community over on LiveJournal.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of these characters, and I'm not making any money from this story.

**Warning:** Consensual spanking of an adult by a friend.

PLAYING SORRY

Dean glared at Castiel, trying to understand what had happened to his friend. Castiel was sitting there calmly playing a game of Sorry with him, while the Leviathan that _he'd_ released into the world were making plans to enslave humanity as a food source. Dean was trying to be patient, because the angel had obviously been damaged by taking on Sam's craziness, but being patient was difficult for Dean on a good day, and this had not been a good day so far.

Castiel appeared somewhat contrite, but he still blatantly refused to answer direct questions, opting instead to provide Dean with philosophical rhetoric.

"We live in a sorry universe," the angel said, while taking his turn at the board game. "It's engineered to create conflict. I mean, why should I prosper from your misfortune?" he asked, while removing Dean's game piece and replacing it with his own. "But these are the rules. I didn't make them."

"You made some of them. When you tried to become God. When you cut that hole into that wall." Dean glared daggers at the angel, daring him to refute that.

"Dean." Castiel looked at him with sincerity. "It's your move."

Dean lost his temper, pounded the table with his fist, and knocked the board game onto the floor. "Forget the damn game!"

Castiel stared down at the table, and Dean struggled to lower his voice and speak calmly. "Forget the game, Cas."

Castiel looked him in the eye and said, "I'm sorry, Dean."

"No. You're playing sorry."

The angel's eyebrows drew together, and he glanced down at the scattered pieces on the floor.

"Hey," Dean said, leaning across the table to get Castiel's attention. Once he had eye contact he continued, "Not the game. We're done with the game. You're pretending to be sorry, because you know I'm pissed. That's not the same as actually being sorry."

With a sigh, Castiel said, "While it's true that my fondness for our friendship may have prompted the apology, that doesn't make it any less sincere. I _am_ sorry that you're unhappy."

"That's not why you should be sorry, Cas." Dean looked into the angel's eyes, trying to catch some glimmer of his friend's former righteousness.

With pity in his eyes, Castiel patted Dean's hand on the table. "What can I do to ease your pain, Dean? How can we resolve this?"

Dean pulled his hand away and said, "Tell me where to find Metatron."

"No, Dean," Castiel shook his head. "That won't fix the discord between us."

Dean closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers. After taking a deep breath, he let his hand drop, and looked at Castiel. He opened his mouth to speak, but Castiel reached over and put a finger over his lips to stop him.

"I have the solution," the angel said with a smile. "You need to strike me."

Dean pushed the hand off his mouth, glared at Castiel, and said, "What?"

"When you and Sam are both unable to compromise, you strike each other. It doesn't solve the original problem, but it often ends the tension between you, though I'm unclear as to why."

Rubbing a hand down his face, Dean said, "I'm not gonna punch you Cas. You're in the mental ward for a reason."

"I don't understand why my mental state has any bearing on the situation."

"It'd be like punching a kid, or kicking a puppy."

Castiel frowned. "Those are not accurate metaphors. I'm not a child. My host's body is a full grown adult, and older than you. Your life span as a human is miniscule compared to mine as an angel. I'm also not a dog. No fur, and opposable thumbs." He held his hands up and wiggled his thumbs.

"Trust me, my metaphor is right on." Dean pointed to his own head and added, "You're like a kid up here. Which is why we're wasting time talking." He stood up. "Come on. Let's go back to Sam and Meg."

"That metaphor is incorrect as well," Castiel said, "but if that's how you see me, then strike me as you would a child."

"I don't _strike_ children," Dean hissed with a scowl on his face, and desperately tried not to think about the two times he'd hit Ben. His stomach twisted with guilt every time he remembered shoving the kid away when he'd been a vampire, and slapping the kid to get his attention when Lisa was injured.

"That's a falsehood, Dean. You struck Sam repeatedly on the buttocks several times when he was a child."

After a moment's pause, Dean shook his head and said, "You're talking about a spanking?" That concept was so far from his previous thoughts that Dean chuckled with relief. He had no problems with spanking as a punishment. He narrowed his eyes at the angel, and said, "Don't tempt me."

"Ah, good," Castiel said cheerfully, "you already see merit in my suggestion." He stood and put a hand on Dean's shoulder. "I don't like this tension between us. Strike me until you feel better." He patted Dean's shoulder before moving to the end of the table, pushing his overcoat to one side, and bending down to put his hands on the table.

Dean stood still for a second looking at the back of the hospital issued white pants on his friend's prone body. "Cas…"

Without looking back, Castiel said, "I won't resist in any way, and I'll keep all of my powers in check. This body will be physically human until you're done."

Dean couldn't deny that he had the urge to do it. He tried telling himself it wasn't the right thing to do, and it certainly wasn't for the right reasons. He'd never spanked Sammy to make himself feel better. It had always been an unpleasant task, used to teach Sam the Winchester version of right verses wrong, or how to stay safe.

"Screw it," Dean muttered. He put his left hand in the middle of Castiel's back, and slapped his right hand down on the angel's backside as hard as he could. He heard Castiel grunt in pain, and smacked him hard again. He hated to admit it, but he did feel some satisfaction when he heard the angel gasp.

For the next few minutes, his thoughts drove his arm to swing as hard and as fast as he could. He thought about the way he'd begged Castiel to stop before he even knew what a Leviathan was. He thought about the pain of watching the angel die. He thought about all the people who'd died because of what Castiel had done. He thought about Bobby, and the loud exclamations of pain coming from the angel seemed right. He felt justified in his actions, until he heard a hitched breath.

Dean stopped the spanking, and took a good look at Castiel. His friend's head was hanging down, his entire body was shaking, and the unmistakable sound of crying could be heard coming from him. Dean took a deep breath, and realized the satisfaction he'd felt was gone.

A familiar feeling of guilt was settling into his guts. He was doing this for the wrong reasons, and he knew it. After everything he and Castiel had been through together, his friend deserved better, no matter what he'd done. It was time to treat Castiel like a brother, and not like an enemy.

Dean said gently, "Okay Cas, I'm almost done, but I want to get a few things straight first. Are you listening to me?"

"Yes, Dean." The angel's voice wavered when he answered.

"You made a lot of bad decisions last year, and those decisions cost people their lives."

Castiel nodded his head slightly and choked out the words, "I know."

"I begged you, _begged_ you to stop, but you didn't."

"Yes."

Dean hardened his heart to the sorrow he heard in that one word, and started to spank and lecture at the same time. "The next time I come to you and tell you you're making a bad decision, you're going to listen to me. And the next time I come to you and beg you not to do something, you are _not_ going to do it." He raised his hand up even higher, and laid down a harsh spank with each of his next words. "Are we clear?"

"Yeeeees!" Castiel yelled through his tears.

Dean rubbed small circles on his friend's back and said softly, "I can't say that I forgive you, Cas. That's a lot to forgive. But the tension that was between us? What'd you call it? Discord? That's gone now. Okay?"

Castiel nodded rapidly, and whispered, "Okay."

He patted Castiel's back before taking his hand away. He said, "All done. You can stand up."

Castiel's coat fell into place as he stood. He slowly turned to face the human with a curious expression on his face, as if he were trying to see if the dissonance between them was truly gone.

Dean put a hand on his friend's shoulder and said, "You okay?"

The angel smiled, despite the tears that were still slipping down his cheeks. He pulled an unsuspecting Dean into a strong hug and said, "Much better now."

"Uh… okay." Dean awkwardly patted Castiel on the back and said, "That's good." He let go, and when Castiel didn't, he said, "Okay Cas. We already did this upstairs, remember? And I'd rather not have snot on my jacket."

Castiel let him out of the hug, and wiped at his face with the sleeve of his jacket. "Sorry. This vessel leaks many bodily fluids."

"Come on," Dean said. "Let's go upstairs to make sure Meg and Sam are playing nice."

Castiel pointed to the board game on the floor and said, "But we haven't finished the game yet."

"The game?" Dean asked.

Castiel kneeled down and started picking up pieces. "I can't go back until the game is completed."

Realizing that Castiel was no less crazy now than he had been before the spanking, Dean sat down hard. He watched despondently while Castiel picked up the pieces of the board game. Suddenly the angel looked up with an expression of wonder on his face.

"What?" Dean asked with worry.

"Sam." Castiel said with a smile. "He's talking to angels."

Before Dean could respond, Castiel disappeared. "Damn it!" Dean jumped to his feet, and ran back towards the room where he'd left Sam.

The End.


End file.
